141 New York Merchants Arrested in Stolen iPhone Sting

New York police arrested 141 merchants over the past week for buying stolen iPhones and iPads. The arrests were part of a sting involving more than 600 stores throughout the city, according to the New York Post.

Police conducted the sting operation in all of the city’s boroughs in an effort to cut down on trafficking stolen electronics. “That’s our intention, to reduce the places where people who steal these things can go and sell them,” said NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly.

Police figured out which businesses to target by asking jail inmates where they try to sell the electronics they steal.

Buyers like snapping up stolen iPhones because they can typically buy them for about US$175 and sell them on eBay for $300. The sellers also try to push the iPhones and iPads on people looking for good deals.

Commissioner Kelly warned against buying iPhones and iPads that way. “If someone is offering you an iPad for way below market value, you have to realize that it’s most likely stolen,” he said.